The Evil Within 2 – Difficulty Levels and New Game Plus

October 12, 2017

Before you hop into The Evil Within 2 on October 13, you’ll have to answer a very important question: Just how tough do you really want your gameplay experience to be? Right when you start the game, you’ll have to choose one of three difficulty options: Casual, Survival or Nightmare. And while you can drop down in difficulty, you can’t go back up again – so you’ll have to choose wisely. These insightful comments from Tango Gameworks may help you decide which difficulty level will be the right choice for you.

Casual

In-Game Description
For those who want to experience the story without a struggle. Items are abundant, and you can take many more hits before you die.

Note from Tango
“For some players the difficulty of survival horror games can be daunting. We tuned the Casual difficulty for those who wanted to journey along with Sebastian but not get too caught up in the stress of managing inventory and succumbing to the threats in Union. The Bottle Break ability is unlocked from the start to allow you to escape from enemy grab attacks as long as you have a bottle in your inventory. In general, items will be more plentiful and enemies will go down much easier. Aim Assist is available as well if you have trouble using the analog sticks to aim.”

Survival

In-Game Description
For those who want the basics of a Survival Horror experience. Keep an eye on your resources, approach situations with caution, and don’t get overconfident.

Note from Tango
“Are you a fairly regular gamer but not very accustomed to the ins and outs of survival horror? Or, are you a fan of the genre, but not in the mood for a crushing experience? This will probably be the difficulty for you. You won’t have to completely micromanage your inventory – but if you get careless, you can run out of resources when you need them. Enemies are many, and you probably won’t have the resources to gun them all down. It would be smart to take things slowly and carefully as you strengthen Sebastian to take on whatever challenges await. And, just in case you need it, Aim Assist is also available in this mode.”

Nightmare

In-Game Description
For those who enjoy a challenge, and for experienced Survival Horror players. Resources are limited, and enemies hit much harder. Careful item management and strategic play are an absolute must to survive. *Recommended for players who enjoyed the difficulty of the previous game. *

Note from Tango
“We can’t deny it, the first Evil Within was a tough game. For some people that challenge is what they love about it and the genre! That’s why we unlocked this difficulty right from the start, and we think that fans of the first game who enjoyed its overall difficulty will have a good time carefully planning every move they make. At Tango, we feel that it falls somewhere in between the Survival and Nightmare difficulties of the first game. However, it was created to be played as a first run of the game so no prior knowledge of the game is required to survive it. Ammunition is rarely found in the game and you’ll have to craft it a majority of the time, so it’s up to you how you handle your inventory. Items are fewer in general and there will be more and tougher enemies in many situations. Also, there will be no option for Aim Assist in this mode. It’ll be rough, but it’ll be tense!”

New Game Plus

Finishing The Evil Within 2 will unlock new features for you to explore, including new gear and outfits for Sebastian. Keep in mind that your difficulty level will have an impact on what you get in New Game Plus.

“After finishing up your playthrough of The Evil Within 2, you’ll unlock new weapons based on the difficulty you finished the game on. On the following playthrough, the amount of Green Gel and Weapon Parts you’ll find are increased to help you upgrade Sebastian and maybe try to find those last remaining files and locker keys hidden throughout Union. And who knows… maybe depending on what you did during your first playthrough, Sebastian may be looking a bit different on his second run through the game.”

In addition to the initial three difficulty options, you’ll also have access to a new difficulty level upon completion of the game. Called Classic, this unlockable difficulty level is designed to put even the best survival horror players through their paces.

Classic

Note from Tango
“Classic is a twist on the difficulty of the game. Gameplay-wise it’s the same as Nightmare, however…

There are no autosaves. Die and you will be returned to the title screen.

There are a limited amount of saves. You can only save your game 7 times throughout the entire game, so you’ll need to plot your course and only save when essential.

Sebastian will be unable to upgrade his weapons or himself. You’ll have to make it all the way to the end of the game with Sebastian’s base parameters and effectively use every weapon and item in his arsenal to survive until the very end.

It’s a difficulty with some real risks and any slight mistake could cost you dearly.”

The Evil Within 2 releases on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC on Friday the 13th this October. As Sebastian Castellanos, you’ll have to dive into hell once more in the sequel to the hit 2014 survival horror game from the mind of Shinji Mikami. Take on twisted creatures in horrifying domains and face off against your own worst nightmares as you race to save your daughter.

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It’s a race against time for Sebastian as he fights to survive and find Lily, his daughter, before she’s lost forever in a crumbling STEM world. As he searches, he is haunted by the ghosts of his past and his own insecurities, but he never loses hope. Determined to save Lily, Sebastian will travel to the depths of this new STEM world and face off against anything it throws at him.